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Stimulating fungi Pleurotus ostreatus with hydrocortisone

Dehshibi, Mohammad Mahdi; Chiolerio, Alessandro; Nikolaidou, Anna; Mayne, Richard; Gandia, Antoni; Ashtari-Majlan, Mona; Adamatzky, Andrew

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Authors

Mohammad Mahdi Dehshibi

Alessandro Chiolerio

Anna Nikolaidou Anna.Nikolaidou@uwe.ac.uk
Senior Lecturer in Architecture and Design

Richard Mayne Richard.Mayne@uwe.ac.uk
Lecturer in Maths Supporting Science

Antoni Gandia

Mona Ashtari-Majlan



Abstract

Fungi cells can sense extracellular signals via reception, transduction, and response mechanisms, allowing them to communicate with their host and adapt to their environment. They feature effective regulatory protein expressions that enhance and regulate their response and adaptation to various triggers such as stress, hormones, physical stimuli such as light, and host factors. In our recent studies, we have shown that Pleurotus oyster fungi generate electrical potential impulses in the form of spike events in response to their exposure to environmental, mechanical, and chemical triggers, suggesting that the nature of stimuli may be deduced from the fungal electrical responses. In this study, we explored the communication protocols of fungi as reporters of human chemical secretions such as hormones, addressing whether fungi can sense human signals. We exposed Pleurotus oyster fungi to hydrocortisone, which was directly applied to the surface of a fungal-colonized hemp shavings substrate, and recorded the electrical activity of the fungi. Hydrocortisone is a medicinal hormone replacement that is similar to the natural stress hormone cortisol. Changes in cortisol levels released by the body indicate the presence of disease and can have a detrimental effect on physiological process regulation. The response of fungi to hydrocortisone was also explored further using X-rays to reveal changes in the fungi tissue, where receiving hydrocortisone by the substrate can inhibit the flow of calcium and, as a result, reduce its physiological changes. This research could open the way for future studies on adaptive fungal wearables capable of detecting human physiological states and biosensors built of living fungi.

Journal Article Type Article
Acceptance Date Jul 9, 2021
Online Publication Date Jul 26, 2021
Publication Date Aug 9, 2021
Deposit Date Jul 14, 2021
Publicly Available Date Jul 27, 2022
Journal ACS Biomaterials Science and Engineering
Electronic ISSN 2373-9878
Publisher American Chemical Society
Peer Reviewed Peer Reviewed
Volume 7
Issue 8
Pages 3718-3726
DOI https://doi.org/10.1021/acsbiomaterials.1c00752
Keywords fungi; hydrocortisone; biosensor; electrical activity
Public URL https://uwe-repository.worktribe.com/output/7527245

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Copyright Statement
This document is the Accepted Manuscript version of a Published Work that appeared in final form in ACS Biomaterials Science and Engineering, copyright © American Chemical Society after peer review and technical editing by the publisher. To access the final edited and published work see https://doi.org/10.1021/acsbiomaterials.1c00752.





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